The President of the Government said that the questioning conducted today by the opposition at the Legislative Assembly on SATA had the "unspeakable purpose" of trying to turn this airline into "a political weapon" against the Regional Government.

"This questioning has the unspeakable purpose of turning SATA into a political weapon against the Government, which has a clear conscience regarding this matter," stressed Vasco Cordeiro.

During the debate on this airline, the President of the Government assured the members of the Parliament that the former Chairman of SATA, Luís Parreirão, was not dismissed by the Government. In fact, he ceased duties at his request as he had received a work proposal from a private company.

"The core argument of this questioning lies in the fact that the Chairman of the Administration Board of SATA had resigned during a Commission of Inquiry on his management, which is not true," stressed Vasco Cordeiro. The President of the Government restated that, out of respect for the Legislative Assembly and its members, the Azorean Government is available to the provide the necessary clarifications to this Commission of Inquiry.

For Vasco Cordeiro, this debate proved, therefore, that some of the opposition has fallen into the "flagrant contradiction" of wanting to anticipate the results of the Parliamentary Commission of Inquiry, a strategy that "does not have the Government's support."

 Vasco Cordeiro also stressed that Paulo Menezes, appointed as Chairman of the Administration Board of Grupo SATA, "has the professional conditions and competence to lead this group to the future."